MONSTER OUTBREAK TOUR featuring Asking Alexandria

As I Lay Dying, I See Stars, Memphis May Fire, Attila

Asking Alexandria

Asking Alexandria. They have risen from nothing to greatness in little over a year. 2009 saw the boys from England release their debut album 'Stand Up and Scream' to an audience just begging for something slightly different, and the 5 english lads delivered. 'Stand up and Scream' has done better than anyone could have hoped for. 2009 was spent touring with many great bands across the United States..., including, Enter Shikari, A Static Lullaby, Alesana and many more. 2010 has the boys touring relentlessly world over and writing the next chapter in their lives. With a hectic year ahead of them Asking Alexandria look set to take the world by storm. If you didn't hear of them in 2009 or 2010 2011 is the year everyone will be talking about Asking Alexandria.

As I Lay Dying

It's hard to believe that a veteran metal band like San Diego's As I Lay Dying could be just hitting their stride now, some 10 years and five full-lengths into an already stellar career. Still, even after just one listen to the quintet's latest, The Powerless Rise, you can't ignore the obvious: One of modern metal's best just got better.

Similar to their approach on 2007′s Grammy-nominated An Ocean Between Us, the band chose to employ the production prowess of Adam D. and record a majority of the album at singer Tim Lambesis' own private studio. The end result is The Powerless Rise; the first true collaborative effort between the current AILD lineup.

Although they didn't know it at first, the band's creative potential kicked into overdrive with the introduction of bassist/singer Josh Gilbert in 2007, who played on Ocean but was not involved with the writing. For the previous two albums, the brunt of the instrumental development was spearheaded by guitarist Phil Sgrosso, whose penchant for melody and riff-conjuring suited the notoriously powerful drum stylings of drummer Jordan Mancino, complimented the lead guitar work of Nick Hipa, and exacted Lambesis's vision for the bands' overall intensity. The aforementioned format remained the same on Powerless but with the addition of Gilbert's musical contribution, added yet another facet to an already established creative dynamic. The result is an album built upon the strength of its parts and the remarkable ways in which those parts become a cohesive whole.

For this current round of lyrics, Lambesis gravitated toward a concept centrally represented in the song "Upside Down Kingdom," which posits that the suffering of the world stems from the broken, upside-down nature of society. In addition to providing the line that became the album's title, the song lays out the guiding premise behind many of The Powerless Rise's ideological excursions—the notion that if we do the opposite of what the modern world tells us, many of the problems this current world causes will no longer exist. Lambesis stresses that rather than fill an album with bitter ranting, he's attempting to offer a solution with Powerless.

So yes, it may come as a surprise to some that AILD would attain an entirely new level of artistry and urgency with their fifth release Powerless when many others might consider phoning it in, but once you appreciate all the various ingredients essential to the album, it's no shock at all. By taking the trademark AILD sound then adding a band-wide effort and Lambesis' novel approach to writing lyrics, the group has truly outdone themselves on The Powerless Rise, at least for now.

I See Stars

I SEE STARS captured the hearts of America's youth in 2010 on Warped Tour and a highly acclaimed run with A Day To Remember, but refusing to rest of their laurels the band quickly went back into the studio to start tracking the long awaited follow-up to their groundbreaking 3D release. That album strayed away from all the musical cliches blending all musical genres to set the bar for a new unique sound. Since there has been a surplus of "electronica/hardcore" music as of late, the pages will be turned once again, and new eyes will be opened, to bands and fans alike. The much anticipated new effort, The End of The World Party, is going to be one of 2011's most talked about albums within the rock genre and perfectly demonstrates the band's impressive depth, maturity and originality.

3D is currently over 30,000 units sold in North America mainly as a direct result of the band's relentless touring that also supported Attack Attack, Forever The Sickest Kids, We The Kids and Emarosa. The group's first headliner with We Came As Romans as direct support selling 500 - 1000 tickets in many markets. I SEE STARS also continues to be one of the top selling bands at retail in Hot Topic.

I SEE STARS is a band made up of lifelong friends and it's that exact dynamic that makes them so entertaining. All members; Devin Oliver (vocals), Andrew Oliver (drums), Brent Allen (guitars) and Jeff Valentine (bass) lived in the same neighborhood as kids. The friendship goes back as far as elementary school. Zach Johnson (keyboards, screaming vocals) later joined in middle school to help the band evolve adding in synth and samples. Jimmy Gregerson (guitars) then completed the six piece group taking Devin off guitar and making him the permanent lead vocalist. Over time as the album 3D was being created people all over the map were already starting to become familiar with the band. Sumerian Records quickly signed the band and released the debut album, 3D, on April 14th, 2009 to rave reviews.

I SEE STARS will be doing their first overseas tour in 2011 with We The Kings in the UK and will also be stopping in Indonesia before performing at the Soundwave Festival in Australia with such genre titans as 30 Seconds To Mars, Iron Maiden, Queens Of The Stone Age and Bring Me The Horizon. Their sophomore record, The End Of The World Party, could possibly be the heaviest pop album yet. This new offering has lots of substance and is very theatric in scope. There is literally something for everyone. The culmination of all this hard work pays off in the spring of 2011 as the band is featured on the Alternative Press tour with Black Veil Bride, D.R.U.G.S and Verse Emerge.

I SEE STARS states: "We are taking I SEE STARS to the next level. This new chapter is bringing mainstream pop to hardcore music alongside build ups that spawn from the core of techno/dub-step/electro music. Catchy and melodic vocals that illustrate a concept that we feel raises the bar. You're going to dance way more, you're going to want to throw your fists way more. When you put those two together, you have a whole different game. We didn't limit ourselves, and teaming up with 3D producer, our buddy Cameron Mizell and a balls to the wall producer like Joey Sturgis (The Devil Wears Prada, Attack Attack, Asking Alexandria), further proved that the sky is the limit to what we can do. The wait is over, and the end is near"

In 2011, I SEE STARS further cemented their status as visionaries of the genre and gain legions of new diehard followers.

Memphis May Fire

MEMPHIS MAY FIRE have consistently pushed the envelope to redefine both themselves and the various sub-genres they've made their mark within. 2009's "Sleepwalking" full-length yielded no exception as the band ventured into the territory of Post-Hardcore / Southern Rock with no reservations. Their fresh approach to an otherwise stale scene gathered critical acclaim and found "Ghost In The Mirror" featured on the both the Saw VI Soundtrack and DVD/Blu-Ray releases. Subsequent touring with the likes of Asking Alexandria, From First To Last, and Alesana facilitated the delivery of their music to the masses and established a live precedent that the band continues to build on today.

Following well-received releases on both Trustkill & Bullet Tooth, domestic/international touring success (featuring the band's first visit to Japan) and a tag as one of Revolver Magazine's "Top 25 Under 25," we're left with only one certainty; members Matt Mullins (vocals), Kellen McGregor (guitar), Ryan Bentley (guitar), Cory Elder (bass), and Jake Garland (drums) are headed somewhere fast.

In fact, it's safe to say that MEMPHIS MAY FIRE are "Sleepwalking" no longer. Their latest effort, "Between The Lies," boasts an elevated aggression that tastefully combines elements of melodic metal, southern rock, and electronics amidst a platform of carefully crafted songwriting. Existing solely in the digital realm, this EP is clearly an indication of things to come in terms of its unique dynamics & cross-genre experimentation.

Fast forward to 2011 and MEMPHIS MAY FIRE have now partnered with Rise Records as an outlet for their musical creativity. This move continues to broaden the band's reach and welcomes a new world of possibilities within the scope of their burgeoning career. MMF's high-octane live show acts as a testament to their ever-increasing identity and always leaves the audience wanting more. Expect their RISE debut to enter your lives later this spring alongside a massive touring cycle that is sure to reach your doorstep. Critics beware; MEMPHIS MAY FIRE are not only here to stay, they're paving the way.

Attila

"You should do whatever it takes to have fun and enjoy the music you're hearing. A party is whatever you make it out to be."

Party death metal rockers Attila formed in their hometown of Atlanta in 2005, meeting each other at their high school and through mutual friends. Their mutual love of music (and partying) brought the guys together to form what would eventually become the fourth imprint on the Artery Foundation/Razor & Tie joint venture, Artery Recordings.

When the guys set out to name their newly formed band, they knew they were looking for a simple, one word name that didn't imply the typical death metal cliché terms such as "blood, dying, and darkness." One day they found themselves in a bookstore passing around a book about Attila the Hun, and so Attila was born.

Over the years Attila has gone through a few lineup changes, but founding members Fronz and Sean have remained a constant staple. For the past two years, the band has consisted of Fronz (vocals), Nate (guitar), Chris (guitar), Sean (drums) and Paul (bass). This lineup really brought together Attila's sound and image that they are known for today. The band began touring full time and as of summer 2010, has been on the road almost non-stop for two years.

Attila released two prior albums, Fallacy and Soundtrack To A Party, on Statik Factory Records, and have previously toured with Arsonists Get All The Girls, See You Next Tuesday, Chelsea Grin, America Me, and We Are The End. RAGE, Attila's Artery Recording/Razor & Tie debut will be released May 11, 2010, and is a unique mix of heavy music infused with elements that make each song fun to listen to and put the listener in the mood to party. "The title can be perceived in many ways, one obviously being a state of extreme anger, and the other being the slang meaning – to party! I have always been a fan of play-on-words and double meanings, and that's what drew me to this title more than anything," Fronz commented.

While Attila certainly evokes thoughts of partying, the band is trying to expand the public's immediate thoughts about party metal through RAGE. They describe the album and their overall take on music as a way of letting loose and having fun, and allowing the listener to take away that message in whatever context they find fitting. As Fronz said, "All we want is for the listener to have a fun experience, and that is the main message behind RAGE."

Band Interests
Drinking, Smoking, Parties, Meeting new people, Meeting fans, we love to get wild and let the good times roll